They give without asking for anything in return except acknowledgement that they exist in our world. I cannot imagine regretting a pet. Some people do.

101613 Simba crossed the rainbow today. He no longer has pain. He can play to his heart’s content. Beautiful dear Simba.

Meet Simba, one of my rescues.

Simba is a an old feral cat (atleast 10-12 years old) who suffers from horrible disease.

He came to my front door in March 2013. I had not seen Simba in two years. I caught him in the trap and release program that we have here. He disappeared until March. He was so skinny. He weighed 6 lbs. and he is actually a big fella. I knew he was starving because he could not eat. I finally got him to trust me and I was able to take him to the vet. His mouth was awful…broken teeth, you name it. We started with that first surgery. He seemed to do well until a few weeks after. A second surgery took place and finally this past Tuesday he underwent a third surgery to remove all teeth and roots. As you can see, his mouth is very swollen. We hope and pray that this is the end of this trial and tribulation for this guy.

It’s been a couple of weeks since the third surgery to remove all roots and canines from his mouth. He’s eating wet food again (A/D feline) and will soon move over to regular wet Friskies in the next week. He’s a tough little guy.

Thank you to everyone who helped McNorman’s Rescues by donating. I could not have done the third surgery without your help. It’s been a very difficult time for me financially. The finances will ease with time (I pray), but I was going to have to euthanize Simba if I could not get his surgery done quickly. Please know that I am truly grateful for all of your help.

RIP my dearest Buglet.

Bug was found six years ago wandering the streets at Thanksgiving. He was about 8 weeks old. I suspect his mother had been hit by a car as he was very thin and hungry. He fell ill a few days ago. His liver gave out. I couldn’t let him suffer through liver failure. Today (9-8-13), I let him find his other friends over the rainbow (I’m sure that his mini schnauzer mom who adopted him and passed away last year will walk him across the bridge). Be happy for all that you have left in my heart my friend.

Today (100313) was absolutely heartbreaking. I lost Circe. Another little feral that came many years ago to leave a house full of love. She died of liver failure. I said goodbye and thankyou for the love that she gave us all.

An amazing cat that would pick up her wet food with her paw and place it into her mouth. She was a talker. Every night she would come and sit next to me. We would talk a bit and then she would sit and watch me work at my computer.

My beautiful Katsu (Simba’s BFF) passed away on Wednesday, December 4, 2013. I found him barely able to breathe. He had been very sad since Simba passed away. I rushed him to the vet and she told me that he was not going to get better. He probably had fluid build up in his lungs and heart. I’m sure that he crossed the rainbow and Simba was there waiting for him.

I couldn’t save this tiny little girl.

01/05/14

She had antibiotic ointment placed in her eyes. She was very ill and I had hoped to save her. She probably weighed less than 5 ounces. RIP little Maru.

I saved her sister Kit. She was found outside half frozen a week before. It has been terribly cold at night. This is Kit in all her splendid glory. She found her way into my fabric closet. LOL

February 20, 2014

My dear silkie terrier Junior has passed away. He had come to me by way of a military family who was moving. They had taken him from another family and that family had also given him away. I cannot tell you how incredibly wonderful this dog was. He was as sweet as honey. I told him that this would be his permanent home when he arrived. We would walk regularly everyday without fail. He shared everything that he had with the other rescues that had been discarded.

He was beautiful, well behaved, courageous and above all loving to the moment that he took his last breath.

RIP Junior.

03/25/14

Another strange and sad day. I came home from work to find my oldest feral cat bleeding profusely from her nose. No, not trauma…leukemia. I knew that I had to let her go no matter how many tears I shed there was nothing more to do than let her rest that final peace.

SweetPea

She was over 9 years old. A very sweet girl who refused to come inside. She lived in my enclosed front porch. I gave her shelter from the cold (always with a heating pad and a heater) and air conditioning in the summer. She came to me with her sister when she was about 4 months old. They have never left my yard. Always attentive, they would sit and watch the hummingbirds every evening. I will miss her terribly. She made me a better person for teaching me to love a feral cat unconditionally.

Wednesday October 1, 2014

Today, I lost Ted. He was a very sweet young feral that I had socialized enough to have adopted, but that was not to be. A horrible hateful neighbor poisoned Ted. His lifeless body was paralyzed when a neighbor found him. To tell you that Ted made me happy is just not enough. He was a sweet cat that would have come inside if I didn’t have dogs. He never walked far…two to three houses away was as much as he would dare be curious over.

He was not the only one to be poisoned, my neighbor’s cat was taken to the vet 7 weeks prior. She had gotten out when the family went on vacation and left her with the grandparents. She would visit me often, but she also visited the house of Hell across the street. She came home and was found paralyzed the following morning. The necropsy proved death by poison. Why? Because they soil someone’s dirt lot?

My criminally insane neighbor thinks that her child is allergic to cats by vision. That is correct, not by touch but by being able to see the cat. Ted would lounge on her driveway occasionally. He was usually at home and wandered over there when they were not home which is very rare. The family is nuts. The son assaulted a postman. The oldest special snowflake lives in pjs all day long. He’s 24 years old. He doesn’t have to work because his mommy will always keep him. The woman is a welfare queen that came from Mexico to suck the life out of this country. Her younger snowflake is mentally retarded. He cannot walk or speak. We only hear him scream daily. Should we call CPS? She called me at work and at home daily to tell me to come pick up fecal matter. What I found was vomit. Vomit from being poisoned.

My ferals have always been well taken care of. I feed them, vaccinate them, and in the end have them euthanized when they can no longer live a healthy life. As for my feral cats, I am a colony manager. I trap, neuter and return because our city euthanizes over 24,000 animals a year. If you keep the ferals healthy, they keep the population from swelling. I called the police and Animal Control. This woman was calling Animal Control on me for two weeks solid. Finally, the abuse of services has stopped. As a colony manager, my cats are protected for now. There is a very special place for people like this in Hell.

I lost my beautiful Freddie yesterday (052215). One evening 15 years ago, I walked out to the front porch and grabbed a black cat thinking how did he get out? When I walked inside, I went about my business until my daughter pointed out that we did not own two black cats. Welcome Freddie. A sweet black cat that would come to be known as the cat/dog sitter. The picture below shows him kitty sitting a very young foundling named Kit. The photo was taken a year before he passed away. He still had the bad eye which he lost in March of 2015. Any animal ill or sad was going to be looked after by Freddie. Never did he abandon them while I was at work. He would stay next to the basket or bedside until I arrived at home. How could one cat be so smart? I don’t know, but he surely was a blessing to me. We will miss him greatly. He passed away in my arms after losing his eye to cancer. Bless you my dearest little friend.

Wednesday. April 6, 2016.

Tonight was a night that I dreaded for many years. My best friend Toonces lay in my arms when he took his last breath.

A sweet cat, he was 19 years old. I could not believe how time had flown. Then again, when you have a friend like Toonces time does fly. I named him Toonces after an SNL skit with Gilda Radner. Thanks for being my friend Toonces.

Well today April 27, 2016 was another day of loss. A little Chihuahua came to me about 7 years ago. Paco was sent back to the rescue because he was too old. He was 9. Lucky me, I brought him home because older dogs are very hard to rehome. Paco passed away today. He had a large tumor on his right ear that was going to suffocate him. I don’t allow my furry friends to suffer when they can cross the rainbow and wait for me.

June 21, 2016 Today, I said goodbye to one of my ferals. It has been very hot lately and I suspect that this was the tipping point for this beautiful little boy named Zigfiel (Ziggy for short). He was a gorgeous gray Maine Coone with green eyes. He was born in 2014 and was as sweet as you can imagine any Maine Coone. He was shy. One of six ferals that I have left in my colony, he didn’t allow me to photograph him. So, he lives in my heart. He passed away today as a result of Feline Leukemia. I know that he crossed the Rainbow and now watches over the rest of the colony.

Thanksgiving has always been difficult as I have lost so many right before this time. Tonight I lost my beautiful Cheech. Thank you so much for being my companion. He was rehomed a two years ago. He was a sweet bird. Very much without human attention, he lost a lot of feathers (not plucking). He was so lonely even though his mate Beautiful produced eggs that were infertile. He passed away tonight (Saturday, November 27, 2016). It was too late to save the little fellow. He was 12 years old.

Summer heat in the desert is beyond tough. You can cook eggs on the sidewalk. My beautiful Sweet and gentle girl passed away. She couldn’t be inside with the others because she wasn’t socialized as a kitten. She made it to 12 years living outside as a feral in my colony. I had special accommodations setup for her and her sister so that they could weather the elements. Finally, I enclosed the front porch and made it a cat haven.

Our town has new laws in effect to protect the ferals. I’m grateful to this girl for giving me the opportunity to have loved her even though it was from a distance. In the end, I did hold her and caressed her as she transitioned over the rainbow. 062517

September 6, 2017

It’s been an amazing journey for a little dog that I found 8 years ago. I helped him cross over the rainbow today. Guido was a Maltese that was as gentle as a feather. Such a sweet little fellow. He was malnourished and matted living on the street when I picked him hu. He had a terrible heart but was always a happy camper. Amazing how long little dogs live. This photo was taken 1 year after I found him living on the street. Bless this little man…he’s crossed the rainbow.